Yesterday, just days before the date set for Zimbabwe’s run-off election, opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai withdrew from the election and went to the Dutch embassy seeking refuge.

From the AP today:

He has survived at least three assassination attempts and last year he was hospitalized after a brutal assault by police at a prayer rally. Images seen around the world of his bruised and swollen face have come to symbolize the plight of dissenters in Zimbabwe…

On Sunday, Tsvangirai pulled out of the violence-wracked presidential runoff, declaring that the election was no longer credible and the loss of life among his supporters was simply too high.

And just now U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice released a statement, including:

The United States condemns in the strongest terms the Government of Zimbabwe’s continuing campaign of violence against its own people… The Mugabe regime cannot be considered legitimate in the absence of a runoff. In forsaking the most basic tenet of governance – the protection of its people – the Government of Zimbabwe must be held accountable by the international community. We call upon the Southern African Development Community, African Union Peace and Security Council, and the United Nations Security Council to take up this issue immediately.